Of course, what Stephenson is saying is that the Linux OS itself is above reproach and these bug-ridden applications were, in many cases, designed by someone not directly connected to the Linux movement. Yes, fine, but most people use an operating system in order to summon those applications and order them to do some desired tasks; they want the OS only if it will run some useful apps. In this light it is hardly enough to have a steady operating system but disastrous applications. Don’t tell me about the best OS in the world and then say that there are an awful lot of crappy applications to go with it.

Imagine an airplane that has the best engine in the world. It will never go down in flames, keeping aloft in the worst turbulence. Marvelous. Then again, the air pressure on this airplane goes kerfluey on a regular basis. When this happens, the windows pop out and passengers are squeezed out at 5,000 feet like toothpaste out of the tube. And the landing gears sometimes seize up, often failing to lower during landings. While these applications may crash and burn, by gum, the engine does not, and that plane will keep on flying forever. This is not terribly comforting.